Harland and Wolff Heavy Industries Ltd joined Dolphin Drilling Ltd, the owners of the departed Blackford Dolphin oil rig, to convert the value of scrap metal from the project to make £25,000 available each to the Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI) and CLIC Sargent, the children’s charity.

David McVeigh, H&W head of sales and marketing, says the donation is a very welcome way to mark the successful completion of this very important project.

“The Blackford Dolphin rig has been visible from across Belfast since her arrival. Now the project is complete and she has departed, it’s fitting that she leaves this lasting legacy,” says David McVeigh. “The contribution projects like this make to the local economy through local jobs and supply chain is considerable. It’s wonderful that two Charities carrying out such important work will now benefit.”

Eimear McCooey, Corporate Fundraising Manager at CLIC Sargent expressed her gratitude for the donation. “We are delighted with the incredible donation from Harland and Wolff and Dolphin Drilling Ltd. It will make a massive difference to our Homes from Home Appeal and to the lives of children with cancer in Northern Ireland.”

“The first Home from Home, close to the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children, opened earlier this year and is already proving to be a vital lifeline for families, providing free accommodation for families to stay whilst their child is receiving cancer treatment. By keeping families together the home helps to retain an element of normal family life at an already very difficult time. This donation will go towards building a second home for families of teenagers and young adults, close to the Belfast City Hospital.”

“It is lovely to know that the scrap material generated from the Blackford Dolphin rig will help to create a very important and lasting legacy for young people with cancer in Northern Ireland.”

Nicola Kelly, RNLI Community Fundraising Manager for Northern Ireland said: “We are thrilled to have received this generous donation and are thankful to all at Harland and Wolff and Dolphin Drilling for their efforts in raising such a significant amount of money for charity. The money raised will now go a long way in allowing the RNLI to equip and train its crews and lifeguards which in turn will allow them to continue to save lives at sea.

“The RNLI which has nine lifeboat stations in Northern Ireland launched 255 times last year bringing 245 people to safety while our lifeguards who are located on 10 beaches responded to 302 incidents and came to the aid of 330 people.”